Behind the Scenes of My Cover Reveal

I knew that the cover design would be ready around this time, so for the past couple of weeks I’ve been refreshing my inbox every few minutes (sadly, this isn’t an exaggeration) in hopes that it had arrived.

But the anticipation in no way prepared me for how I felt when I actually saw it.

I spent about fifteen minutes just staring at it, shaking and crying because I couldn’t believe that this wasmybook, that my name was on the cover. Before this, it didn’t seem real to me. Logically I knew that my dream of being published had come true and that my book would be out January 2017, but that knowledge was, for some reason, separate from my feelings. And then I saw the cover of my book and I felt that my dream had come true.

I’m getting teary just thinking about it.

When I was finally able to move again, I sent my husband a message, and waited very impatiently for him to reply (and of all days, he was in a full-day meeting then). I wanted him to be the first person to see it, and until he did, I couldn’t share it with anyone else (it’s one of the unspoken rules of marriage). While I waited, I thought about how the cover of my book captured one of its best scenes. How it showed the backdrop of Cape Town , South Africa, at night exactly as I’d pictured it.

It made me even more emotional because this book is set in my country, in my city, and everyone who’s familiar with Cape Town will be able to recognise the places my characters visit and the settings I describe. Having read far too few romances set in places I could relate to, I felt so proud to write about my home.

And as if that wasn’t enough, this week I also set up an author profile for myself on Amazon and Goodreads. I’m making progress with this whole author thing! I feel so blessed to be doing what I love!